Heretaunga Tamatea Claims Settlement Bill

I move, That the Heretaunga Tamatea Claims Settlement Bill be now read a first time. I nominate the Māori Affairs Committee to consider the bill. On 26 September 2015, I was welcomed on to Te Aute College in the Hawke’s Bay for the signing of this deed of settlement. The hospitality shown that day to the Crown party was outstanding, and I am honoured to extend a warm welcome to the members of Heretaunga Tamatea who are here in Parliament today for the first reading of their bill. I am so very pleased you are here.

I acknowledge members of Heretaunga Tamatea who have passed on while the hapū pursued justice. Many of the original claimants who filed Wai claims have died. There are too many to name, but all of them are significant—more recently, Eru and Nuia Smith, who filed the earliest claims, Wai 69 and Wai 71, and Ngāmoa Gillies, who died shortly after the ceremony at Te Aute in 2015.

Can I acknowledge Ahi Robertson. She was raised by her grandfather, who was a towering figure in Heretaunga Tamatea history. He was a sentinel voice against the injustices that arose over Aorangi and Whatumā. Ahi Robertson has achieved what her grandfather started with Lake Hatumā returning to its original name of Lake Whatumā, and the reserve being returned to Heretaunga Tamatea as part of the settlement.

The injustices that arose over the Aorangi block have been addressed, and I commend the work of Roger Maaka and Tīpene Hēperi, who so ably negotiated the memorandum of understanding between the Crown and the trust board. I acknowledge the mandated negotiators of Heretaunga Tamatea, particularly my old friend Liz Munroe, the lead negotiator—she was very well taught by me; she was my law clerk—and her colleagues David Tīpene-Leach, Peter Paku, and Brian Morris. The negotiators were supported by He Toa Takitini, the mandated entity. Their approach to negotiations was reflected in their name—He Toa Takitini—“Our strength is in unity”. This was so evident during the negotiations and, since the deed was signed, in their approach to resolving, for example, the issues concerning the Aorangi Māori Trust Board. The chair of the settlement trust, Elizabeth Graham, and the board of trustees are going to take Heretaunga Tamatea into the future.

I have an idea that some members of Ahuriri hapū and Ngāti Hinemanu me Ngāti Paku Heritage Trust are here today. I know that Heretaunga Tamatea have really appreciated your support so that we could have this first reading before the general election. I also want to acknowledge Pat Snedden and Lil Anderson, chief negotiators for the Crown, and I want to thank my colleagues, their agencies, and this House for the support received for this Treaty settlement.

Let me say something about the journey to settlement. In 2003 the overwhelming majority of tribunal claimants in the tribunal’s southern Hawke’s Bay inquiry district agreed to file a comprehensive statement of claim in the tribunal. The mandate for He Toa Takitini to represent Heretaunga Tamatea in negotiations was recognised and terms of negotiations were signed in December 2011. The agreement in principle was signed on 11 June 2014, and, as I have said, the deed of settlement was signed on 26 September 2015.

Before 1840, Heretaunga Tamatea was a community—independent and self-sustaining hapū—with an economy and polity consistent with tikanga Māori of the time. In the late 1840s, rangatira offered land to the Crown to secure mutually beneficial relationships with the Crown and European settlers. However, by the end of the 1850s the rangatira and hapū of Heretaunga Tamatea were making collective arrangements to halt further purchasing after the Crown had acquired more than two-thirds of their rohe in a manner that created significant tensions between hapū and that culminated in armed conflict and deaths.

In the 1850s, the Crown used secret transactions and other divisive tactics to purchase huge areas of Heretaunga Tamatea land, often without the knowledge or consent of local customary owners. In the 1860s, the Heretaunga Tamatea hapū used their remaining lands to produce goods for trade and to generate significant rental income, but the Crown’s introduction of native land laws facilitated large-scale land purchasing by private parties in the 1870s and 1880s. These dreadful land laws facilitated the further dispossession of the Heretaunga Tamatea hapū rohe. At the beginning of the 20th century, it was the same old story: only a fraction of Heretaunga Tamatea lands remained in Māori ownership, yet the Crown continued to purchase land, often through measures that placed considerable pressure on individual owners. So, by 1930, the Heretaunga Tamatea hapū were left with barely a shadow of their whenua. Today the hapū speak of being a tangata without whenua, and more than half of all Heretaunga Tamatea Māori now live outside their traditional rohe.

The settlement includes a historical account that sets out the relationship between the Crown and Heretaunga Tamatea since 1840, and a formal apology from the Crown for its many actions and omissions that have breached the Treaty and caused harm to individuals, whānau, and hapū. The settlement also provides for, among other matters, the vesting in Heretaunga Tamatea and the gifting back to the people of New Zealand of the Cape Kidnappers Gannet Reserve and the Cape Kidnappers nature reserve. This in itself gives this House an insight into the generosity of spirit that Heretaunga Tamatea has shown in the agreement that has been reached.

The settlement includes $100 million in financial and commercial redress for Heretaunga Tamatea, and the purchase of a 56.66 percent share of the Kāweka and Gwavas Crown forest licence land. A further $5 million will be set aside to support the long-term sustainability of Te Aute College, and the particular negotiators can be thanked for raising that at the eleventh hour. I will not tell you what exactly my purple prose was when it was raised, but we got there, and so we should, because it is a great college. Many of its lands are trapped by those ghastly Glasgow leases, and it is a college that has made a huge contribution to New Zealand. At the risk of upsetting the St Stephen’s College people, I have to say it has probably made the greatest contribution: Sir Peter Buck; Sir Apirana Ngata, a great Nat; Sir Māui Pōmare, a great Nat; and Sir Pita Sharples, not a great Nat but a good guy. The school has a long and proud tradition of producing outstanding leaders, and I know that this is a great investment for the future.

So this is a significant milestone, and the Crown looks forward to continuing to work with Heretaunga Tamatea to steer this legislation, enacting this settlement through Parliament. Before I commend the bill to the House, can I simply address some of my colleagues, because although it is late in an election year and bipartisanship is fast going west, as it were, for obvious reasons, I want to thank all my parliamentary colleagues for their work on this very important take over the last 3 years. It has been a real team effort by some great parliamentarians. Can I particularly acknowledge Catherine Delahunty, who leaves us in a few days. I have never seen such commitment to Treaty issues. She is a friend of mine—you can have friendships across the Parliament—and I wish her all the very best for the future.

Finally, can I acknowledge Kennedy Graham, who is a true man of principle, a real class act. I have quoted this before: John F Kennedy once said it takes courage to stand up to your enemies, but it takes real courage to stand up to your friends. The price that he has had to pay has been enormous. He will not have the opportunity to be a Minister, but he will be remembered for much more. He is a fine parliamentarian, a man of principle, a champion for addressing the hard issues of the 21st century—not a bad parliamentary epitaph. I commend the bill to the House.

Tēnā koe, Mr Assistant Speaker. E te iwi o te hau kāinga, tēnei te mihi maioha ki a koutou katoa kua tae i tēnei wā. Harikoa te ngākau, ka kitekite i a koutou mō tēnei wā. Nō reira, e ngā mana, e ngā reo, ōku rau rangatira mā, tēnā koutou, haere mai, tēnā koutou, haere mai, tēnā koutou katoa.

E ngā mate kua wehe ki Te Pō: Uncle Dave, Wati Stone, Tom Tuhi, Bossy Mako, Auntie Kate Hakiwai, George Morris, ngā mea, ngā mate o ia marae, o ia hapū o Heretaunga Tamatea, haere atu rā, haere, haere, moe mai rā. Kāti, anei te mihi ki a koutou katoa i tēnei wā.

[To you, the home people, I greet you all affectionately who have arrived here at this moment. The heart is elated at seeing you collectively for this time. Therefore, to the authorities and languages, my esteemed ones of a hundredfold and others, acknowledgments to you collectively, welcome, accolades to you collectively, come forth and congratulations to you all.

To you, the deaths that have departed to the void: Uncle Dave, Wati Stone, Tom Tuhi, Bossy Mako, Auntie Kate Hakiwai, George Morris, the ones and the deaths of each marae and of each hapū of Heretaunga Tamatea, depart indeed, go forth, journey on, rest there indeed. Enough, here is the formal tribute to you all at this time.]

It is indeed an honour, and I had best be on my best behaviour, because I have got a few aunties up there in the audience, but it is an absolute honour to stand in this House to acknowledge the work, to acknowledge the special day of our whānau, Heretaunga Tamatea o Ngāti Kahungunu. Can I first acknowledge the negotiating team: Peter Paku, Brian Morris, and, of course, the very formidable—and I am not too sure, Minister Finlayson, whether actually you had all to do with it, because I think Liz is a formidable woman by herself—Liz Munroe. Kei te mihi ki a koutou katoa [I acknowledge you all] for the mahi that you have done to bring us thus far. I want to acknowledge He Toa Takitini taumata, our kaumātua who for many years have given the wisdom and a guiding hand throughout this process. Kei te mihi ki a rātau.

[I pay a tribute to them.]

I want to acknowledge Dr David Tīpene-Leach, the chairman of He Toa Takitini. David, again, your leadership through this process, through trying times, stands testimony that we are here today, so ngā mihi ki a koe, e te rangatira [salutations to you, esteemed one].

And, of course, Liz Graham, our current chair of the Heretaunga Tamatea Settlement Trust—I want to acknowledge Liz’s work and all the board members who have helped get us this far.

It is a day of celebration. Even though this House is rising tomorrow, I am just so pleased that we are able to have this first reading of the Heretaunga Tamatea Claims Settlement Bill. I am not going to traverse what the Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations has talked about, but what I do want to say in this House and go on record and quote from the deed of settlement about is the beauty of this rohe of Heretaunga Tamatea. I want to acknowledge the 23 marae of Heretaunga Tamatea: Houngarea, Korongatā, Mangaroa, Rākautātahi, Tapairu, Waimārama, Kahurānaki, Matahiwi, Ōmahu, Rongomaraeroa, Taraia, Waipatu, Kairākau, Mataweka, Pourērere, Ruahāpia, Te Āwhina, Whatuiāpiti, Kohupātiki, Mihiroa, Pukehou, Rūnanga, and Te Rongo-ā-Tahu.

The rohe of Heretaunga Tamatea—“Considered the richest, most fertile soils in all of Aotearoa, the traditional tribal rohe of Heretaunga Tamatea comprises 1.475 million acres spread amongst lofty mountain ranges, deep, contouring valleys and large, vast alluvial plains with five main river systems fuelled by the Heretaunga and Ruataniwha aquifers. The rohe of Heretaunga Tamatea is aptly described by ‘te kanohi hōmiromiro o te hāro o te kāhu’ (the all seeing eye of the hawk in flight). It starts on the coast at Te Kauwae-a-Māui/Cape Kidnappers and follows … to the [river]mouth of the Tūtaekurī River. It then [goes] westward … to the foothills and eastern slopes of the Ruahine Range. Heading south, it embraces the Kāweka and Gwavas Forests to the headwaters of the Manawatū River in the south. It then crosses eastwards to the coast at Te Poroporo and turns northwards up the coast embracing Parimāhu, passing one of the nation’s outstanding landscapes—Kohinurākau, Te Mata-o-Rongokako and Kahurānaki, the sacred mountain of the rohe—to arrive back at Te Kauwae-a-Māui/Cape Kidnappers.” I bring this pōhatu, called Parimahu, gifted by our whanaunga Robert Rōpiha when I first came into this House. This watches over me when I am in this place, and I wanted to bring that out, to our whanaunga who have joined us here today.

Before the arrival of Europeans, a system of wetlands, swamps, and lakes extended from the Heretaunga Plain, through the Pekapeka wetlands and the Ngā Puna-ā-Tara, to the Whatumā lake system in the south. This, together with the area’s coastal fisheries and extensive bush, provides extremely rich sources of food, as well as medicine and materials for the region’s people. The names of the rivers, streams, natural features, fauna, and flora of Heretaunga Tamatea illustrate the long association between the land and the people it sustains. The significant wealth and prosperity of Hawke’s Bay has been sourced from both the lands and the waters of the rohe, and from the labour and the generosity of generations of the hapū of Heretaunga Tamatea.

This generosity is the primary example of the tikanga or manaakitanga, the customary practice of welcoming and embracing guests to our land—our participation, with distinction, through several colonial and imperial wars, our major contribution to industrial, pastoral, agricultural, and horticultural development. Our iconic academic, artistic, sports, and, I would like to acknowledge, our beauty and acclaim is evidenced in the hosting of Matatini at the beginning of this year—and kei te mihi to all our marae of Heretaunga Tamatea and Ahuriri who came and offered manaaki ki te tangata to our visitors around the motu. Of course, the crowning of our niece Harlem-Cruz Īhāia as Miss Universe New Zealand, all the way from Ahuriri, all the way from our home people—a big mihi to us all on this special day.

These lands, these people, nourished many who lived there and many who came here. It is not surprising that through the actions of the Crown, the acts of omission, many of our people lost their lands. So it is right that the Crown makes some amendment. Let us be clear about that—makes some amendment.

I want to also acknowledge the discussion from the Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations about the $5 million to Te Aute College, and that will be another kōrero at our second and third readings. I want to say thank you to you, Minister Finlayson, for the contribution towards Te Aute College. I know that there is still some work to be done around the lands of Te Aute, but you have shown, with good grace, that you are open to entertaining the settling of the lands around Te Aute College. I wanted to say that particularly on behalf of my father, as an old boy, and also to the many leaders whom you described who have come out of that iconic school.

In the time that I have left to contribute to this bill, it is, like I said, an absolute honour to stand here to acknowledge the hard work of the negotiators, and to welcome our people from home. It is your day—it is your day. It is important that we ensure that those—there will be some of us, we all have them in our whānau, who will disagree with what is transpiring here. All I want to say is, ka aroha ki a rātau [I sympathise with them].

This is an opportunity to come before the select committee to have your say—have your say. This is the beauty part of this Parliament, that it is open to everybody to have their say, and I encourage those who may not have felt that this is the right thing to do to come before the select committee and let your feelings be known.

I want to end, again, as we close up the 51st Parliament—this is my fourth year. We will all be leaving this place to take on another battle. I want to acknowledge those who are leaving us, who have had their final speeches in the House. I am going to send good wishes to them all. I want to wish you, Mr Assistant Speaker Tisch, the very best on your journey. To all members of this House, thank you for making the 51st Parliament a very enjoyable one. I wish you well on the hustings. Go well. God bless. Ngā mihi ki a koutou katoa, tēnā tātou. I commend this bill to the House.

Tēnā koe e Te Māngai o Te Whare, e huri noa i Te Whare nei, e mihi atu ki a koutou katoa. Ā, tēnei te mihi, e nau mai, haere mai te iwi o Kahukunu-mātaki-rau, Ngāti Kahungunu. Nō reira, mauria mai ō whakaako ki te kaupapa e huihui ā-tākata. E mihi atu ki a koutou katoa.

[Thank you, Mr Assistant Speaker, and salutations to you all throughout this House, I greet and bid you welcome. Welcome to the people of Kahukunu-mātaki-rau, Ngāti Kahungunu. Therefore, bring forth your teachings to the matter that brings people together. I acknowledge you all.]

It is indeed a privilege accorded to very few of us to speak on auspicious occasions like this—on the occasion of the first reading of the Heretaunga Tamatea Claims Settlement Bill. I stand here as a proud son of Kai Tahu. I stand here as a proud old boy of Tīpene. I stand here also as a proud father of a son who went to Te Aute College. If I go back before my parliamentary career, up there in the gallery I see some faces whom I was honoured to take across to North Africa and to Italy from the 28th Māori Battalion D Company, or Ngāti Walkabout, from Ngāti Kahungunu. I stand here today to acknowledge all of that and also as the chair of the Māori Affairs Committee.

In saying that—I need to do this for the record—I will go through and highlight again the important parts of this Treaty settlement bill. I was there that day at Te Aute when we signed the deed of settlement, and now this is the start of the journey of your bill—of this bill—through Te Whare Pāremata. This bill settles the historic treaty claims of a large group of hapū that occupy, and continue to occupy, the rohe of Heretaunga Tamatea in Hawke’s Bay.

Naturally, I would suggest that the most notable of these hapū would be a name very familiar to me, Ngāi Tahu ki Takapau, but, actually, this is a collective of many hapū working in harmony together for the benefit of all—for the benefit of all. It is real kotahitaka in motion, and that is manifested in the inspiring motto for this group reflected in the name of the representative entity, He Toa Takitini. Our strength is in unity. If that is not kotahitaka, I do not know what is. So kia ora for that particular part of this process, which is actually ensuring that the waka is being hoe-ed so that we get to the final end, when that happens in the third reading.

The hapū of Heretaunga Tamatea encountered Pākehā very early, coming into contact with the Endeavour in 1769, when several men lost their lives at the hands of the European sailors. They had contact with the Resolution 4 years later, when they traded cloaks and a pou toki for goods and foods, and that went on to form an important part of the food economy of Heretaunga Tamatea.

What a fascinating part of the history of the first contact with Ngāti Pākehā, and also the way that it was used, when we look at the use of that fertile and beautiful land of Heretaunga Tamatea. The hapū always sought to remain friendly, and this part, to me, is the essence of the beautiful korowai, or cloak, of Ngāti Kahungunu. It is that friendliness and passiveness that they have, with which they extended the hand of friendship and the hand of a people whom I thought were actually the ones who had that real commercial sense of entrepreneurship. That was part of relationships that were reflected by that. So that is why Kāi Tahu—tēnei te mihi o te whanauka o te waka o Tākitimu [this is the tribute of the relative of the Tākitimu canoe]. So maybe that is how we all get it, possibly through Kahungunu, Kāi Tahu—who knows? But that is a good reflection of what happened in the historical account.

In the 1840s, local rakatira wanted to attract more settlers—and this is the other part of this—in their rohe to increase their economic opportunities. So what did they do? They hoe-ed their waka to Wellington to offer land to the Crown. The Crown set about arranging this, but told Māori that the real payment for their lands was not the money but the advantages of civilisation that settlers would actually bring, including superior schools and the enhanced value of the remaining lands. The initial planned sale was not completed due to differing assessments of the value, but discussions about offering land to the Crown soon recommenced after an extensive negotiation.

What we see there today, though, is the fact that along with that entrepreneurship, there is that incredible value around how important education is, and that is manifested again in the great college that you actually have in Heretaunga Tamatea. Unfortunately, at the time of the sale, the Crown reiterated the benefits of civilisation that Māori could expect to enjoy. This large sale—particularly the Waipukurau purchase—was at least negotiated relatively openly, with the exception of the extra area of the land added right before the sale.

There is another interesting part of this. The next land sales became known as ngā hoko tāhae, or the secret sales, when the Crown negotiated with very few rakatira in Wellington, and some of the deeds of sale had five or fewer signatories. So we start seeing the unfortunate aspects of the trust that was actually compromised by Ngāti Pākehā towards Ngāti Kahungunu, and, as they say, a lot of it—the rest of it—is actual history. But what happened is that we then see all of the negative effects of the strategy, even the caution by some of its own officials about purchasing land where ownership was disputed. We see, as we come through the historical account, that then we have the disputes of ownership of title that was sold without the consent of all of the owners—only by a few—so even when the Crown has acknowledged the things that have happened, it was an unfortunate situation.

We have heard today in other Treaty settlements about the role of the Crown, and it was despicable in a lot of these things. But what we need to understand today is that the role of the Crown is to actually try to right those wrongs. It cannot do all of it, but at least it can do what it can do under the auspices of being able to have at least the apology, the historical account, and then, after that, the commercial redress as well, which is part of it.

Within the 1 minute and 10 seconds remaining, what I want to also do is say that this is my last speech in the House as the chair of the Māori Affairs Committee in the 51st Parliament. What better way to say farewell to this 51st Parliament than to have the iwi of Ngāti Kahungunu here and to be able to be part of this first reading. The other thing too is acknowledging all of my members on the Māori Affairs Committee. One thing that we always did 3 years ago was we said “Let’s park our political affiliations at the door, and let’s get on with what’s good for our people.”, and that has been our kaupapa for 3 years. That is a reflection of what we have here today.

So this bill, the Heretaunga Tamatea Claims Settlement Bill, has started its journey, its hīkoi, through the House of Te Whare Pāramata. I wish you all well, and, hopefully, if I am honoured to be back here again, I look forward to continuing the progress of this bill. Nō reira, e koutou rā, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, e mihi atu, e mihi atu ki a koutou katoa.

[And so, to you collectively, I acknowledge and commend you collectively and pay a tribute and salutations to you all.]

Tēnā koe, Mr Assistant Speaker. Ā, kāti, “Tihewa mauri ora ki te whai ao, ki te ao mārama!” E ngā hapū maha o Heretaunga Tamatea, e Ngāti Kahungunu, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, tēnā tātau katoa. Nau mai, whakatau mai ki Te Whare Pāremata, ki te ana o te raiona e takatū nei. Nō koutou tēnei rā, ko tēnei rā whakahirahira.

Nō reira, me mihi atu ki a rātau kua whetūrangitia, ngā mate i hinga rā, e hinga mai nei, haere koutou, haere koutou. Āpiti hono, tātai hono, rātau te hunga mate ki a rātau, apiti hono, tātai hono, ko tātau te hunga ora, ki a tātau, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou. Nō reira, ko hau tēnei tā koutou whanaunga, ko Ngāti Pāhauwera tēnei e mihi atu nei, e tangi atu nei ki aku mātua tini karanga maha, nō reira, e aku whanaunga tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, ngā mātāwaka o te motu, tēnā tātau katoa.

[And so, “Behold the breath of life to the light of dawn and to the world of light!” Salutations to you, the many hapū of Heretaunga Tamatea and of Ngāti Kahungunu, acknowledgments to you collectively and to us all. Welcome and pay homage to Parliament and to the lion’s den standing here at the ready. This day is yours, this magnificent day.

Therefore, let us pay a tribute to them who have become a star in the heavens, the dead who have fallen, and continue to fall, go forth, journey on. The lines are drawn, the dead to the dead, the lines are drawn, we the living to ourselves, and so salutations and acknowledgments to you collectively. And so this is I, your relative, and Ngāti Pāhauwera extending a tribute to you collectively, and grieving to my myriad of grown-ups and many callings, therefore, salutations and accolades to you, my relations and kinship group of the nation, my appreciation to us all.]

It is a great pleasure indeed to be able to speak in support of the first reading of the Heretaunga Tamatea Claims Settlement Bill. It is a historic day and I too will add my welcome to all of the manuhiri who have come, who have travelled from afar, and those who might be tuning in over the airwaves to join in celebrating this significant occasion. I will also give a little shout-out to Te Kura Kaupapa Māori o Tuia Te Mātangi from Whakatū who have come here.

This is a significant day. I just want to add my congratulations on all of the work that has gone on in the lead-up to this point. Can I acknowledge He Toa Takitini and, in particular, the negotiators, but also all of the many kaumātua and kuia, the whānau that have been part of the mahi and the struggle to lead us up to this point. It is just great to be able to share in these occasions. Can I acknowledge the work of He Toa Takitini, in particular the chair, Dr David Tīpene-Leach, Liz Munroe, Brian Morris, and Peter Paku, who I know are all up there in the gallery.

I want to acknowledge Dr David Tīpene-Leach just for his mahi for our pēpi, which he has been doing over many years, in reducing sudden, unexpected death in infancy. So I do want to acknowledge you for that important mahi, Dr Tīpene-Leach.

So here we are. We are here at this first reading. It is a significant day. I have not been a member on the Māori Affairs Committee through this Parliament, but I do acknowledge Tutehounuku, my whanaunga there from the south, for his chairmanship and for the work that goes on within the committee in its consideration of these important bills and settlement legislation. I know that as we go into the 52nd Parliament it will continue as we usher the passage of this bill through the House. I too acknowledge my tuahine here, Meka, and the work that she is doing with her people up in Ngāti Kahungunu. It is great to be able to be here to tautoko her as well as we conduct this first reading of this historic bill.

I will not repeat them, but there are 23 marae—23 marae—that make up Heretaunga Tamatea. I know quite a few of them very well. When I was a child growing up, blowing my Rātana horn in the Rātana band, I went to Ōmahu Marae and others. But I know that I have travelled up and down through the takiwā, and it is just wonderful to see them all represented here. Boy, they know how to manaaki. I mean, we do it good down south, but those are stunning, stunning memories that I have of visiting those marae and enjoying the hākari and the waiata. I sure hope we get to hear some today—the wonderful waiata from Ngāti Kahungunu. Those top 10 songs—everyone who is Ngāti Kahungunu knows those top 10 numbers. Those are the memories that I have of going through, and obviously I also think back to my late aunt the Hon Whetū Tirikātene-Sullivan and my late grandfather who served the Southern Māori electorate, which included all of Kahungunu way back in the day, and I know how significant it is. So it is a pleasure to be their mokopuna, to be able to speak on this occasion.

We know that there is quite a dark history in terms of our country. We see it so often in all Treaty settlement legislation. What really jumps out at me in relation to Heretaunga Tamatea is the disposition of land. We know and we hear in every Treaty bill the modus operandi of the settler Government, whether it was through shonky purchases, whether it was through wars that were created in order to divide and rule, or whether it was through the Native Lands Act 1865—that was a tino taniwha that piece of legislation. We have heard that, and it is spelt out in the historical account with Heretaunga Tamatea, and the loss is real.

The deprivation of the economic base and what effect that has on a people is all too evident. To have 1.4 million acres and lose 1.2 million—84 percent—is just horrific. But we hear these stories all around the motu, and I am so pleased that we are here now and we can acknowledge that. The Crown is apologising for that, and we can now enact this settlement legislation to do our bit to rectify the wrongs of the past and build a base for Heretaunga Tamatea to launch from, into the future. That is definitely what this is about.

I do not want to prolong my contribution, but I do want to, once again, just mihi to our manuhiri from Heretaunga Tamatea and Ngāti Kahungunu. I am not an old boy of Te Aute College. I was close to it, though. I am the greatest old boy that never was. I had my dorm number. I had everything. I was all ready to go when I was just about to start college, and then at the last minute my dad wanted me to stay and play in the Ratana band. So I stayed home there in Pōneke. But I do acknowledge the provision that has been inserted into the settlement in regard to Te Aute College—one of the great Māori colleges. And I looked forward to, as we consider the bill further, all of the other gestures there, like the magnanimous gesture of the gifting back of significant sites. Those are huge gestures that Heretaunga Tamatea is going to be doing as a result of this legislation. So I do mihi and acknowledge them for that.

But for me, for this moment, I just want to mihi to everybody. This is the end of the 51st Parliament. We do not know who is coming back—ha, ha! But I do mihi to everyone here. As we continue on this mahi, we have done our bit for this Parliament, and the work will continue into the next Parliament where we will ultimately pass this bill for Heretaunga Tamatea. Nō reira, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, tēnā tātou katoa.

Tēnā koe, Mr Assistant Speaker, tēnā koutou Heretaunga Tamatea, ngā kuia, ngā koroua, ngā mātua, ngā whaea, ngā rangatahi, ngā tamariki me pēpē, tino ātaahua.

[Thank you, Mr Assistant Speaker, and greetings to you, Heretaunga Tamatea, the elderly women and men, parents, mothers, young ones, children and babies, really wonderful.]

Welcome, welcome to Te Whare Pāremata. I am very honoured to be speaking on the bill for this fantastic iwi. I want to acknowledge Meka Whaitiri. It is a wonderful day to be here and to acknowledge your contribution and all your people who have come. It is a wonderful thing. Because it is probably my last speech in the House, I just want to thank the Minister for Treaty of Waitangi Negotiations for his kind recognition of my commitment, as a Pākehā, to speaking up for Te Tiriti, because Te Tiriti—you would not know it—is not Māori business; it is Pākehā business, and we ain’t doing the business until we do the business, and so I really want to stand on that take here today.

I would just like to start with Te Aute College—many people have referred to it. My memory, as a Pākehā, is that I was part of the Hīkoi Takutai Moana, and we were driving—we walked, we hīkoi-ed in the towns, but we drove between them—slowly past Te Aute College when we heard a sound, and the sound was some young men with their shirts off standing by the road doing the haka to acknowledge us. And we will never forget, all of us who were on that hīkoi—all of us five Pākehās and everyone else—the sound of rangatiratanga that Te Aute College gave us that day and that we received from Heretaunga Tamatea. And it has stayed with me for ever that sound of the next generation and the next and the next. One of the great old boys of Te Aute, Moana Jackson, always says—and I always listen—that Te Tiriti is not settled; it is honoured. That is where I will always challenge my own, because it is about: where is our honour? Where is our honour in this country?

We have not educated our own. It worries me that of the people who read Hansard—and I do not know how many people in this country spend their evenings reading Hansard when they could be watching a cooking show; I am going to be doing that when I leave here—or read deeds of settlement and historic accounts, how many people who are not Māori read these incredibly important documents? It is from there—from the understanding of who we are and who we are not, and of what has happened and what colonisation actually means. That is how we will transform this country; not by relying on tangata whenua to educate us. They have given enough. Enough has been given. It is time for us, my culture, to step up. Step up. We need to step up now, and the Crown has a role in helping us to do that.

I want to return to the historical account. When I was reading this, it was one of the most gruelling historical accounts, not because of the obvious blood on the page, at the first superficial glance, but because of what lay underneath. The relentless nature of the lying and thieving that took place has to be read and has to be felt to be understood, and I know I do not understand it but I got a glimpse of it, and I think about this beautiful whakataukī: “Te kanohi hōmiromiro o te hāro o te kahu.”—the all-seeing eye of the hawk in flight. For the kāhu, for the hawks in the gallery, who are all-seeing, they can see that we, the rest of us in this country, do not see what was taken and do not understand what was sold, and so this cannot be a full and final settlement until we take it on and we see what the kāhu sees: the theft of one of most magnificent pieces of whenua and awa across Aotearoa.

I lived in Tai Rāwhiti, and I drove through the whenua many times, and always there was a sense of wealth, but not the wealth of the tangata whenua; the wealth of those who have benefited from the theft. And time and time again, people in my culture say: “Oh, but I wasn’t there. I didn’t do it.” No, our generation was not there. We supposedly did not do it. We benefit from it to this day, and until we own that benefit, we cannot be part of the solution. It is not for Māori to lead on that; it is for us. I will say that again: our responsibility, as Pākehā and as tauiwi and as tangata Tiriti, is to honour article 2, because things happen that we need to feel and understand. Mr McLean for a kick-off, the surveyor who ended up in all kinds of important roles but who actually had to appear in front of the Napier magistrate in 1860 for being a rip-off artist—“He was described as one of the greatest trespassers and occupiers of native land in the province.” But they still name streets after him. He is still seen as a hero of the colonial story.

💬 Marama Fox: Rugby Park. Kapa haka trophy.

Yeah. So how come? We do not know what Donald McLean was responsible for and what happened over those years from the 1850s, from post the Waipukurau settlement, from what was lost.

I think too that in the 1870s it was reported that the people of Porangahau were raising funds to send a deputation to the Queen, and after that people petitioned this Parliament again and again and again. I did not know before, to my shame, that Porangahau, a small but perfectly formed settlement on the coast, had to consider that in 1870. They had to consider going to the Crown in England because of what was being done—because of the loss of more than half the land by the 1860s. It had been purchased by the Crown.

I want to talk about one quote that just cut me to bits. In 1936, 20 percent of Māori children in Heretaunga Tamatea died before their fifth birthday—20 percent. That was five times the Pākehā rate. We have statistics now that are better than that, but they are not terrific, which tells us there is work to be done for our tamariki, for our mokopuna, so that those statistics disappear. They disappear from the fact, but they remain in the history, and we must remember those children who were lost—the grief that people have had to carry. I cannot imagine how you have carried it and survived, and you are still standing upright, hosting Te Matatini, being awesome, being Kahungunu.

I just want to acknowledge your environment, because there is an acknowledgment that—I love the euphemism—the whenua suffered “significant environmental transformation”. I think that is a euphemism for “raped and trashed”. Let us call it what it is. Tukituki Awa—I stood beside that awa this year. I looked at it, the sadness of the awa, the magnificent awa, trashed by land uses that have to be fixed. Ngaruroro is another magnificent awa that people are fighting to protect. It was then an economic base that was capable of producing kai and feeding thousands of people without trashing the environment. We need to watch and learn. Those tūpuna of these people knew how to grow food, how to look after whenua, how to preserve awa, and how not to trash their environment. But now we look at your rohe and think about the co-governance, the redress, and all the rest of those arrangements. You are getting back something that has been broken up. So now it is going to be the job to fix it. Well, thanks for nothing! If I were you, that is what I would be saying.

There is actually a lot of mahi that has to be done, and my whakaaro is: may my culture honour its responsibilities to truly be partners in the relationship called Te Tiriti. Otherwise, who are we? Who are we? Are we settlers? Are we thieves? Are we beneficiaries of a rip-off? What are we? I know that we are a good people, but in our ignorance of the past and our refusal to acknowledge our present privilege, we are continuing to do harm. I dedicate my life post this Parliament to continuing to commit to this, and I encourage all people, all Pākehā, to stand up, learn the history, listen to the whakaaro of Heretaunga Tamatea if you live in Hawke’s Bay. Listen, learn. Whose whenua are we standing on, who have generously given us a place to stand? Kia ora tātou katoa.

Tēnā koe, Mr Assistant Speaker Tisch. Before I contribute to the debate on the Heretaunga Tamatea Claims Settlement Bill, I want to acknowledge you, given that this will probably be the last time I have the opportunity of addressing you. I just want to thank you for, certainly, the personal assistance you have given me in this House during your occupation of that august seat. I wish you all the best for the future.

Tēnā koe, ā, tēnā hoki tātou, koutou ngā whanaunga nā te mea, mōhio ana i a tātau nō hea a Kahungunu! Nā reira, ka mihi, ka mihi atu ki a koutou, mihi hoki ki a koutou ngā kaikawe o tēnei kaupapa, i kawea atu mai i te whakatakotoranga o ngā kerēme, tae noa ki tēnei wā. Nā reira, ka nui ngā mihi ki a koutou. Ka nui hoki ngā pūhaehae i roto i a au nā te mea, i a mātau i roto o Ngāpuhi, kei te tatari tonu i a mātau ki te mahingia wā mātau kerēme, engari, ēhara nā Te Karauna te hē, nā mātau tēnā. Nā reira, tēnā pea, te kaha anō ō tā koutou āwhina mai i te motu, tēnā pea ka haere mai koutou ki te wā kāinga ki te awhi mai i a mātau e noho tonu i roto i ngā pōharatanga o Te Tai Tokerau. Kia ahatia? Mōhio ana au, kei te hōhā pai ētahi o waku whanaunga o te hau kāinga engari, ki tōku whakaaro, kei te tohutohu i a rātau kia maranga mai, kia mahingia ngā mahi, kia tae kē ki te wāhi pēnei i a koutou i te rā nei. Kia ahatia? Kei te huri haere waku kōrero engari, ka hoki mai ki te pire nei.

[Thank you and us as well, and you, the relations, because we know where Kahungunu is from! And so I acknowledge and commend you collectively and, as well, the bearers of this matter who did so when the claims were made right to this moment. Therefore, there are many tributes to you collectively. There are many jealousies too within me, because we in Ngāpuhi are still waiting for our claims to be done, but that is not the Crown’s fault, it is ours. Perhaps, therefore, through the strength of your assistance from the nation, you will come back home to help us living in the Northland poverty. So what can be done about it? I know for sure that some of my relations from back home are well and truly irked, but, in my view, it is telling us to rise up, to do the work, and to arrive instead at the place you are at today. So what? My comments are merely going around in circles, but must come back to this bill.]

I just wonder whether or not, if we had the opportunity in Te Tai Tokerau, to invite the claimants to have signed their deed of settlement back home—because I noticed that Heretaunga Tamatea signed their deed of settlement at Te Aute College. And what did Te Aute College get? It got $5 million for it. I think that that is a testament of the sense of obligation of this iwi to their community—knowing full well that Te Aute College is a college for all Māori students from around the country. They could have been selfish and said: “No, no, we’ll just give a scholarship of $5 million to our own children.” But, no, it has obviously been given with no strings attached. I think that that is just an example of the manaakitanga that this iwi has displayed to people around Aotearoa. It is also an extension of the manaakitanga they offered during Te Matatini, as the honourable member from Ikaroa-Rāwhiti alluded to, and I think that should be acknowledged during this debate.

This is a claim that is representative of 43 different hapū, and they are actually listed in the bill. While I know that there will be some people who will be delighted about having their claims settled in this manner, experience tells me that there will also be others who will not be so happy, because they have been caught up in the process of settlement in terms of large natural groupings. Not every claimant is happy about having their particular claims included in large natural groupings. I can see the argument from the Crown’s point of view as to why they do this, but I also have some sympathy for those claimants who want to deal with their claims separately. I note that this claim is also a result of direct negotiation between the claimants and the Crown, and I think that this is an example of what can happen if people decide to enter into direct negotiations. I only say that as a possible reminder for my own iwi that perhaps they ought to consider that at this stage.

The bill is the culmination of quite a lengthy process, and I understand that there are one or two people who descend directly from those who were responsible for the original claims. That is alluded to in the synopsis that has been circulated with the debate pack. I notice that financial and commercial redress of $105 million includes just over $50 million in on-account payments, and $5 million will be set aside to support the long-term sustainability of Te Aute College.

I also notice that in the local paper, reporting on this process, comment was made that for one of the claimants it was, in some respects, a sense of relief—I think a sense of relief that this whole process has got to this stage and they can actually see the light at the end of the tunnel. In other respects, there is a sense of great sadness, and I can appreciate that because you remember those who started this journey on behalf of the claimants themselves. So I can understand those sentiments.

This process of referring it to the Māori Affairs Committee will allow for those people of the tribe who have a contrary view on this settlement an opportunity to express that view, and consideration as to whether or not amendments should be made to the bill. But at the end of the day, it is something that—if they want to participate or are desirous of seeing changes, then they have to participate in the process. It is not acceptable to just sit on the sideline, watch the process take place, and then after that due process has been taken to then criticise the end product.

I just want to—like the rest of those who have spoken before me—commend to the House this bill, and I look forward to dealing with it in the Māori Affairs Committee in the select committee process. Engari i te kōrero whakamutunga, ngā mihi nunui ki a koutou o Heretaunga Tamatea, kia ora mai.

[But, in the closing statement, huge tributes to you collectively of Heretaunga Tamatea, and well done.]

Ā, tēnā koe e Te Mana Whakawā. Well, tēnā koutou, nau mai, nau mai, haere mai ki Te Whare ō tātau, tēnei Whare o Pāremata. Ōku pou, ōku rahi nō ngā tōpito katoa o Heretaunga Tamatea, kai te mihi atu ki a koutou, kai te mihi atu ki a koutou ngā rangatira kei waenganui i a koutou, e kōkiri nei i tēnei kaupapa kei mua i te aroaro o Te Taraipiunara, e whawhai kaha ki te taha o tērā o ngā Minita me ana kaimahi e noho nei kei runga ake rā. Nā reira, ki a koutou, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, kia ora mai tātau katoa. Man, hareruia, hareruia, hareruia, kua tae ki tēnei wā!

[And so, thank you, Mr Assistant Speaker. Well, acknowledgments to you collectively, welcome, come hither, come into this House of ours, this Parliament House. To my pillars and numerous from all extremities of Heretaunga Tamatea, I greet you collectively and acknowledge the esteemed ones in your midst who thrust this proposal before the tribunal and fought hard alongside that one of the Ministers and his officials sitting up there above. So to you collectively, I acknowledge and commend you, my appreciation to us all. Man, hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah, this moment has arrived!

And I could not be more proud. The day we walked up to the signing at Te Aute, to that amazing site, I grabbed hold of Donna Awatere Huata and said: “Come on then, let’s make a bit of a stir.” We thought we were making a stir because she was in Mana and I was in Māori; we were not making any stir whatsoever, because all the stir was up there on the ātea, welcoming the Crown to that significant day when they would finally—finally—sign the deed of settlement. Awesome. It was an awesome day and a day that I will long remember.

I remember standing in front of you all feeling so proud, seeing all of our rangatahi out there, doing the haka, doing their dues. And our young women out there, leading out the front; our young men, right beside them, and then the way was split, straight to our kaumātua—too much. What a sight. I wish that some of you could have stood where I was standing to watch it happen, because you had practised over and over again, ready for that day.

But your practice came after years of preparation; years and centuries of preparation. I think back to Mohi Te Mātorohanga. Our tupuna Whatahoro, reputedly one of his protégés, sat at his feet to record the details of the whare wānanga, to record the details of his knowledge and hold it in perpetuity for all time, for all of us.

And when we did the Kahungunu Reo—rah-di-rah; I am not sure what it was—we were looking at our language, to see whether we could document it and record it and go around with tape recorders and record our old people speaking. They came to Wairarapa and said “Who have you got?”, and we literally had to say: “Nobody.” We literally had to say there was no one left that anyone could record who spoke Te Reo Māori tūturu from birth, from Wairarapa, from Ngāti Kahungunu. So where did we go? We went to those manuscripts that recorded your history—Mātorohanga’s words, Nēpia Pōhuhu’s words—the words of the Māori Parliament, to find the words of our ancestors veiled from us for such a long time because we did not have the language to read them.

We remember Te Matatini—and how cool was that? How generous, the people of Ngāti Kahungunu. It is all right, we are in the House; it is just us. I will be the kūmara on your behalf—or, actually, the anti-kūmara. It was great, and we should be proud, to have gone from a people who were virtually languageless, who have been told off by other iwi—do not pretend we have not; we have—for not having enough, what, culture, tikanga; for observing differently the aspects and the cultural custom of our people. We have. But to stand up so proudly together at Matatini and show our Māori nation that we are still here, we have still got skills, and we have our knowledge. But we have our knowledge because people just like yourselves went out and searched for it, went out and documented it, and went out and recorded it. And now Kahungunu is held up as an example of what it looks like to revive Reo, for Te Mātāwai—kia ora, Jeremy. And soon we will come to Kahungunu again, for the Reo awards.

You know, innovation sits amongst our people. And so I joined a group. I wanted to stand at Matatini with our young people. We got pipped at the post by Tamatea Arikinui, again—and you have all heard that story, you fullas—again came fifth to your fourth, and they only took four. I am not bitter. I even tried to learn the words of that blinking mōteatea that I still have trouble with now, but I have asked a few of our young ones if they would do it with me and I will try to follow with my phone, because what is recorded in this House is recorded for ever—for ever. I look back over the Hansard of this House sometimes to find out the things that people said about us. It made me angry. It made me want to come and take a place here, made we want to come and see the place where they said that the time has come to decide whether to civilise the natives—ooh, or exterminate them. “But if we are to civilise them we have to do so in a language that is more conducive to human thought.” Right? I got angry. But that is all right, because that spurs us on. It spurs us on to do things like Te Matatini and the Reo symposium and the kura Reo, and all the wonderful things that Kahungunu have done to revitalise and restore our lost knowledge. So I try—I am going to follow along, but please help me out because I want to get this in the Hansard. Nothing better describes our people than this. Here we go, nō reira:

Hikitia, hapainga ake i te tautara ki KahurānakiKei te uru rā ko te taupae ki RuahineKei runga rā ko te taupae ki RemutakaTe mata o Te Ika a Māui Tikitiki-a-Taranga e rarapa mai rā e-eKi Kahotea ko Mahinārangi taku ara rā ki Tainui Ki taku Upoko Ariki, ki a Tūheitia, e ko Te Kīngitanga e-eKo Te Whatu-i-apiti ki Te Roto-ā-Tara i kau tāwhai nei a Te Huhuti i te ānga a taraTe kōpū i puta ai ko Te Hāpuku, ko te tātai manu kura o te rohe e-eKōmuri mai ana ki te hāronga o te kāhū ki Heretaunga raorao haumakoTe putunga o te kai e-e! Māhitihiti mai ana ngā wai tuku kiri o Tukituki-papa, o Ngaruroro, o Tūtae-kurīKo te iwi Ponaturi kei Te Whanga-nui-a-OrotūNgā uri rā ko Pānia ko tana tama ko Moremore Ka topa, ka tiu ki Mōhaka ko Pāhauwera, ko Te Huki tātai ure pūkakaKa nanati, ka whiu i tana kupenga kia toro atu i Pōrangahau ki roto o Uawa Nāna ka noho mai ko te waikanaetanga, ko te rongo taketake i waenga i te iwi e-eKei paku kō atu ko te wai matangi rau, hōpūpū, hōngenengene, e ko Te Wairoa e-e!Whiua te titiro ki te uranga mai ko Hine-matioro, ko Te Kani-ā-TakirauNgā mana tiketike o te motu eRākai-pākā ki Nūhaka, ki Te Māhia-mai-i-tawhiti ko Ngāti Hikairo,Ki Te Whakakī-nui-a-rua ko Ngāti Hinepua Ko Hine-pūariari ki Whareongaonga i kī nei tana korero,“Kāore hoki tērā te hanga o taku tāne, kāore e rūpeke mai anaTakoto noa mai te nuinga i waho”Utua ana e te tapairu o Tawapata, e Rongo-mai-wahine, i hinga nei i te pīhau pāua,“Nā te mea rā he kōpua pāpakuMehemea rā e taka ana ki te kōpua hōhonu a Rapa e tuwhera atu neiPokopoko ana ia ki roto”Ka noho rangatira te tahā wairere nei a Kahungunu i ana wāhine tokowaru Pepehatia ana “Ko te ure whakaparatī”Ka puta ki waho ngā uri whakaheke e tū atu nei, ngā tukunga iho o Ngāti Kahungunu e-e!

There is not much more to say after that. I am going to give a copy of the kupu to the people who record and translate for us, so they can get it down in the Hansard for all time immemorial.

Tēnā koutou rangatahi mā, ko koutou te tutukitanga o tērā o ngā poropiti a Paora Potangaroa nāna te kī [Accolades to you, the younger generation, you collectively are indeed the end product of Paora Potangaroa, that one of the prophets who said]—[Interruption] I will be finished very quickly. He said that we will lose our language but our children will bring it back. Tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, kia ora mai tātou katoa.

Kāti aku rangatira i rongo atu ahau i ngā kupu kua waiatatia, kua ngeritia ki roto i tō tātau Whare i te rā nei. E te pāpā e Jerry, ka tuituia te mana o tō tupuna a Te Hāpuku ki tēnei te uri a Kawiti. Ko Te Whakaputanga ki runga rā. Kāti ake, e te pāpā e Brian, harikoa ana kua hoki mai koe ki tēnei pito o Te Motu, ki tēnei kāinga o tāua. Ko te manako i pai tō hararei ki tāwāhi, ki tō mokopuna engari, e mihi atu ana ahau ki a koutou! Hoinō ko tāku i tēnei wā hei whakakapi ake i ngā kōrero mō tēnei wāhanga o te rā. Kua rongo koutou, e ōku rangatira, i ngā kōrero a Te Minita huri haere i roto i Te Whare nei, ko ngā kōrero e pā ana ki tēnei pire, ko ngā kōrero e pā ana ki a koutou, hoinō ko tāku i tēnei wā, i te Pēpuere kua pahure ake nei, i karapoti ai ngā iwi maha o Aotearoa ki runga i a koutou, te kawe i ngā mate ki runga i a koutou! I tēnei wā, ko koutou tēnā kua kawe mai i ngā aituā ki runga i te tāhūhū o tō tātau Whare, kia kotahi ai te mihi atu ki a rātau mā kua ngaro ki Te Pō, haere, haere, haere.

Ka whakahokia mai ngā rārangi kōrero ki a tātau e Te Whare. E ōku whanaunga o Ngāti Kahungunu, e tika ana te kōrero, nō roto i a au o Muriwhenua tērā tupuna o tātau engari, ka whakaaro ake mō tōku tupuna a Te Wera Hauraki, ā muri ake i ngā pakanga a Hongi, a wai atu rāini a Pōmare mā ki Te Nukuroa. I noho ki roto i a koutou, anā, ko ētahi o ngā tatau pounamu i hoatu e koutou ki a ia, nā ka heke iho mai ki tōku whānau, anā ko Te Rei-ā-Nihoniho tērā, ā, nō reira i runga i tērā hononga ki a koutou, e mihi atu ana. Ko te manako, kia pai ai tō koutou hokinga atu ki te wā kāinga. Kaua e haere nā runga i te pōhēhē ko te mahi o ngā mema o tēnei Whare, ko te mihi ki a mātau anake. Ē, kua rongo atu koutou e whiuwhiu haere nei ngā mihi ki ngā Minita, ki ngā mema, anā, ki Te Kaiwhakawā i tēnei totohe, hoinō tāku ki a koutou, tēnā koutou, haere me ngā manaakitanga. E tautoko ana au i tēnei pire, kia ora tātau katoa!

[And so my esteemed ones I heard the words being sung and chanted in our House on this day, Oh, father figure Jerry, the integrity of our ancestor Te Hāpuku is being linked to this relative of ours Kāwiti. It is an elevation to the very uppermost indeed. And so enough, father figure Brian, it is really pleasing that you have come back to this side of the country, to this settlement of ours. The hope is that your holiday overseas to your grandchild was good, but I am acknowledging you collectively! Accordingly, my part at this moment is to cover off the contributions for this part of the day. To my esteemed ones, you have heard the contributions by the Minister right throughout this House, those related to this bill and to you collectively, and so my part at this time relates to the February just past when many tribes surrounded and descended upon you with the deaths upon their backs! At this point, you collectively are the ones bearing the deaths upon you to place upon the ridge pole of our House so that tributes are accorded to them at the same time as one who has gone to the void, depart, go forth, farewell.

The contributions are now brought back to us in the House. To my relatives of Ngāti Kahungunu, the statement is correct that that ancestor of ours Muriwhenua comes from within me, but I think about my ancestor Te Wera Hauraki following the battles of Hongi and whomever, about Pōmare and them, to Te Nukuroa. He lived amongst you, and there, some of the most enduring peace was given by you to him, consequently it came down to my family, that was Te Rei-ā-Nihoniho, and as a consequence of that connection to you, I salute you. The hope is that you return back home is a safe one. Do not go on the mistaken impression that the task of members of this House is solely to compliment us. I draw your attention to the compliments being cast about to Ministers, to members, and even to Mr Speaker in this debate, accordingly mine to you is congratulations, go forth with respects. I endorse this bill with my appreciation to us all!]

Bill read a first time.

Bill referred to the Māori Affairs Committee.

Waiata

The House adjourned at 1.10 p.m. (Wednesday)